Ford Windstar GL

If you haven't tried this already. Try replacing the radiator cap. Sometimes that is all it is.

Sounds to me like you have dirty fuel injectors or you have a clogged fuel filter. Try some fuel injection cleaner and replace the fuel filter. It's under the rear passenger side of the car. I have the same car. Good luck!

In addition to the good answer above, the transmission may be slipping. First check your transmission's fluid level and quality (run the engine for about 15 minutes to get the transmission fluid hot, then while the engine is running, check the transmission fluid dipstick--don't check the fluid while the engine is off or cold, since you won't get the proper reading). Wipe some of the dipstick's fluid onto a white paper towel or rag to check its color. If your transmission fluid level is low, check for causes of leakage (usually a bad gasket on the transmission pan and/or the transmission side cover) and get this fixed. In the meantime, top off the transmission fluid to give you some protection against outright transmission failure caused by low fluid. If the fluid's color isn't good (a nice translucent red, instead of dark), drain and replace the transmission fluid, and see if that helps. If it doesn't help entirely, put a bottle of transmission fluid enhancer into the transmission, like Lubegard red or Lucas Transmission Fix. It's cheaper than a transmission rebuild, and temporarily fixed my 1994 Taurus's transmission slipping (ran fine for a year, and now it's back to slipping). Don't use a fluid that contains Teflon, since that can clog some of the tiny channels in a transmission, and its filter.

Back in the old days, cars used an oil pressure gauge - and then along came what are sometimes referred to as "idiot lights" that took their place.

The very same function is being performed: letting the driver know if the oil pressure, therefore the oil levels are getting low.

The flickering light lets you know the oil level is right at the point of being able to trigger the light on the dash.

Also, when the engine is just idling, the pressure is lower and light goes on. When the car is moving though, the engine is turning over faster and the pressure builds up and the light goes off.

The #1 cause of engine failure is engine oil neglect - running oil too long between changes (if any at all!), and running with not enough oil.

The Owners Manual will have all the details and even illustrations on how to take care of your car's oil.

If the thermostat is broken in the closed position the engine would overheat rapidly. If it was broken in the open position the engine cooling system would not reach normal operating temperature and the heater would produce only warm air.

Take the thermostat out and put it in a pan of water on the stove. When the water gets to around 200 deg F, the thermostat should open. If it doesn't it needs replaced. Observe carefully that you have not installed the thermostat upsidedown. Spring-side to the engine

Comment: if you have it out, don't bother with the testing except for curiosity - just replace it for the extra $10 or less.

What to look for:

• If the vehicle has a radiator cap - run the engine with the cap off and watch for coolant flowing past the opening. This is a good thing - the thermostat if fine

  CAUTION If the radiator is filled to the top with coolant and the engine is run without the radiator cap in place, the coolant will expand and spill over as the engine warms up. Be ready to put the radiator cap back on.

• Feel the top of the radiator hose to confirm that the coolant is warming up. If the engine is overheating, but the top hose is still cool to the touch, the thermostat is stuck closed and must be replaced.

1. Drain enough coolant (into a clean container) to get below the level of the thermostat housing
2. Remove the upper radiator hose from the thermostat housing. See TIP below
3. Remove the mounting bolts and remove the thermostat housing.
4. CLEAN BOTH SURFACES of ALL gasket material! Any gasket left behind will likely cause a leak.

   NOTES:

   * Compare the size of the thermostat to the old one - make sure the new one matches up

   * Ensure the thermostat fits into the groove in the block or outlet housing.

   * The spring side faces the block - If the thermostat is installed backwards, the engine will overheat

5. Install the gasket - DO NOT USE RTV sealant

   NOTE - When a paper gasket is used and the recess is in the thermostat housing, it is a good practice to position the thermostat into the recess and glue the gasket to hold it in place. If it falls out of its groove during installation, the outlet housing can be cracked or a coolant leak will result. Before tightening the water outlet housing, try to rock it back and forth to be sure it is flush. Housings are often cracked during this step.

6. Reinstall the thermostat housing bolts - tighten evenly
7. Refill the cooling system and run the engine, or pressure test, to check for leaks.

Follow the top radiator hose back to the engine. There is where the t-stat housing is.

• Remove the hose,
• remove the housing,
• remove the old t-stat,
• clean gasket surfaces
• install the t-stat into the housing with the spring side sticking out toward the engine,
• use spray adhesive to attach the gasket (DO NOT USE RTV),
• reinstall hose(s)
• be careful to evenly tighten the housing bolts until they are snug -DO NOT TORQUE HARD ON THE BOLTS
• Fill the cooling system with a 50/50 mix of coolant and water, and burp the system.

I had to take the air cleaner tube\hose off to give me more room.

Your radiator has two big hoses, one on the top and one on the bottom. The upper radiator hose connects to the thermostat housing. On my 1996 Windstar it's a pain to replace it because there are many components in the way.

For anyone working on a car's cooling system, you MUST check out the MUST-HAVE tool for dealing with those spring-type hose clamps!!

This tool has a pinching device on the end to securely grab the 'ears' on the hose clamp - squeeze the handle to open the clamp, and then automatically lock it open.

The next awesome feature of this tool: the clamping action is on the end of a cable - you work it down to the clamp buried down underneath, or directly next to some part of the engine - minimal clearance required.

Sears makes one - check it out at a local store and linked below.

I don't know if this will help, but I am currently replacing the thermostat on my 2000 Windstar, and it is located where the upper radiator hose connects to the engine block.

You have to remove the two screws that hold the housing, and there it is.

I have found this to be true with a number of vehicles I have worked on.

Top right side of the engine.

Follow the larger sized radiator hose to it.

It is at the lower end of the top radiator hose within the water outlet on the engine.

Just below the throttle body where the Rad hose enters the block

Follow the upper radiator hose to the engine. The hose will be connected to the thermostat housing cover. It is very difficult to see due to the location. If you want to get a good look at it, remove the air induction hose in-between the throttle body and the air clean housing.

Other than the upper radiator hose and the 2 mountings screws, nothing else is needed to be removed to install a thermostat on a 1999-2003 Ford Windstar.

Steps:

1. Disconnect the negative battery cable. CAUTION

   Never remove the radiator cap when the engine is HOT. Serious personal injury can result.

2. Drain and recycle the engine coolant.
3. Remove the upper radiator hose at the thermostat housing.
4. Remove the thermostat housing from the engine.
5. Remove the thermostat from the housing with a counterclockwise twist.

Follow the upper radiator hose to the engine and that housing there contains the thermostat. It is kind of hard to get to but it depends on you.

Be sure to put the spring on the new thermostat TOWARDS the engine.

3 tools should be needed for this job..screwdriver (flat head), 8mm deepwell socket w/extensoin and maybe some pliers to rotate the radiator hose clamp away from 1 of the 2 bolts required to remove the t-stat housing.

• Step 1. remove the airbox assembly. just loosen the clamp with a screwdriver at the throttle body, a pull back the airbox assembly and unhook all the electrical connectors. under the throttle body you will see the radiator hose leading to the t-stat housing. it's a little tricky to get to, but should not be a problem if the hose clamp is not in the way of one of the bolts. if it is, just rotate the clamp by squeezing it with pliers. (that's the hard part) but hopefully it won't be in the way.
• step 2. remove the bolts with an 8mm deepwell socket. you'll need a deepwell cuz the bolt on the left is also used to hold a clip for the spark plug wire holder otherwise known as a "stay". REmove the plastic stay to get to the bolt. then remove the 2 bolts and pull the housing back with the hose still connected.
• step 3. remove t-stat and any gasket material so that both surfaces are clean.
• step 4. replace t-stat and gasket. use gasket sealer with the gasket that comes with the t-stat.. re-assemble everything and you are done.
• check for leaks after a test drive.

Listed on the driver's door post.

Answer 2:

It's 35 psi

(yes, it says "35 psi" but that is only part of what it says on the label. it says, "35 psi "LR" and 35 psi "RR" -- which i interpret as "Left Rear" and "Right Rear" -- but there is nothing about LF and RF (Left Front and Right Front)-- or am i misinterpreting the meaning here?) Anyway, need to know if the front and rear tires are safely inflated to 35 psi all around, or does the car manufacturer want 35 psi on the rear tires only, while the front tires should be 40 or 44 maximum air pressure (sidewall maximum on the front tires is 44 psi, while on the rear tires, max sidewall is shown as 35 psi). Max sidewall inflation gives better miles per gallon fuel efficiency, and also prevents the tire from wearing out quite as fast. As long as the suspension is ok with the maximum sidewall inflation, is this also ok in terms of steering and handling, for the Ford Windstar?

1. Thoroughly spray the door switches (on each door) with:

• Cleaning spray - clear the sludge out of the mechanism - electronic contact cleaner, carb, brake, etc
• Air, canned or even better, from a compressor
• Spray lubricant - a dry lube (best), silicone spray, WD-40 or similar

2. Open and close each door several times to work the lube into the mechanism

This is usually sufficient to clean the electrical & plunger mechanism inside the door switch.

If this doesn't work, you could remove the door panel and do the spray treatment from the inside also.

If this doesn't work, the switch may have to come out for repair (see below), or replacement.

Lubing the latches sometimes helps, but when the curls are big enough you can use a whole can of WD-40 and it isn't going to help.

Get out some needle nose pliers and a sharp utility knife. Cut and peel away the curls. You might need a magnifying glass to see them.

This has worked on both doors (driver's side usually goes first). My In-Law Taurus Station Wagon had the exact same thing happen. Looks like Ford used the same bad latch hook design.

Now I will explain the way to fix these sending units. I will be using the rear lift gate as my example.

1. Remove the trim panel from the rear gate.
2. Using a t25 torx bit remove each complete latch assembly from both sides of the lift gate. There are 3 of these screws per side. I take one off at a time so as not to stick wrong one on wrong side.. however it really isn't that complicated if you pull both.
3. Once you have them out you will see an electric sending unit on each latch with a 2 wire connector, remove that. Then if you look closely at where the sending unit slides into the latch.. you will see a plastic backing that has the words "tab" stamped into it. Now... very carefully slide a small screwdriver under where it says "tab" and apply a little pressure upwards, not too much or it will break. While you have the pressure applied rotate the sending unit clockwise so it unlocks and slide the sender out of the latch assembly.

   Now if you want to never have the door bother you again... throw these in the trash and put everything back together and you're done.

   HOWEVER if you want to do it right.. take the sending unit and either replace it with a new one for each latch or use some quality carb or parts cleaner to clean the heck out of them.

   You will see a small metal sliding switch, when this switch gets stuck IN it causes the door chime and lights to stay on. So clean it will it moves easily on its own. A few drops or lubricant will help AFTER it is cleaned.

After you have them moving freely just put everything back together. I myself also use carb or parts cleaner on the complete latch as well till its totally clean of all old grease then I spray on some new white lithium grease before putting everything back together.

Spraying the latch with WD40 will sometimes work, however in the long run it will only last a while. The issue is the sending units are sludged up and the more wd40 and such you spray on the more dust and stuff it will collect... making it sludgy and sticky again.

• Another symptom of a persistent door ajar situation is the interior lights will no longer work. Fix the false reading and the lights will start working properly again.
• sounds like you have a door jam switch gone bad. In most cars this is easy to replace, just unscrew old, unplug, plug in new, screw back in. The ford part number is SW5195.
• Some vehicles have a sensitive switch that controls the dash lights IF the switch is set 2 almost FULL on OR DOME light on THE light will flicker-sometimes.

I have this problem every 6 months or so...here is another tip: On the rear door....open it, but lift it only about 1 foot or so. I say this, because that is the angle that the lube seems to need to hit the switch just right....then use the WD 40 or similar penetrating lube and spray the heck out of the latches.....get the red tube into the tiny crevices and gaps around the latches on all doors and into the hidden switches that are connected to them. Do this on each side of the rear liftgate door as well as front and sliding door.

I think I now know how to solve this problem. The rear door or 'back lift gate' as it has been called, has two latching mechanisms, one on each side of the door. These are positioned from the inside of the door itself. At the very bottom of this latch is a small spring loaded micro switch that senses if the latch is open or closed. The switch gets dirty and then won't allow the pin to travel to the fully protruding position which should indicate the door is closed.

I found this out by going to a vehicle junk yard and removing the latches from the back door of a scrap vehicle. I was able to disassemble the switches but the latches were on my work bench when I did it. I'm not sure how hard it will be to remove the switch while the latch is in place because I haven't actually replaced the non-working ones in my van yet. You need a screwdriver to pry up a tab which keeps the switch from rotating 90 degrees. Once the switch is rotated, it drops out of the latch.

clean the little square plates at the top of the rear hatch with rubbing alcohol

my 98 has small black plastic box sensors on side and rear door that senses when door is open they are about 1 inch square i sprayed these lightly with wd 40 and moved them to and fro with my fingers to free em up no more unlocking or dinging or lights

The sensors for the rear hatch on the 2003 Windstar are on the latching mechanisms inside the hatch. I sprayed mine with WD-40 today and it worked like a charm. I accessed them by removing the plastic panel from inside the hatch.

In hind-sight, I think that spraying the mechanism from the exterior would have been adequate.

So, I took a blow-dryer (hairdryer) and pointed it in the latch holes of the rear hatch door (right inside the door) and just in case, at the lower spring latch.

After a few minutes, the light went out--without shutting the latch!

It went back on briefly when I shut it-- then went off and stayed off.

Don't know if this is a permanent fix--but it did work.

• an old fashioned pencil eraser effectively cleans the surface tarnish off the contacts. It's an old computer technician's trick and best of all, it works!
• household cleaner - wipe them down with some wd-40.

  This is just a temporary fix, and needs to be done about every 4 weeks.

• fine sand paper, steel wool,

When moving the sensor plate on the door jam it may be necessary to take a jig saw and cut the square hole a little wider in order for the plate to fit back on the door jam properly. Use sheet metal screws to reattach the sensor plate.

You have to remove the door panel to gain access to the door latch assembly and it is located on the lower side of the latch. You'll find two connectors one for the lock actuator and one lower for the door ajar switch.

Loosen the latch and twist the door latch out and you'll here it pop and come out.

reverse process to install

I've had this same problem with my 2003 Winstar. The problem is the contacts on the sliding doors. The dealer cleaned the contacts and the problem was resolved for about a month. You have to keep cleaning these contacts regularly or what I did was turn off the dome lights. This problem can kill your battery so I always keep the dome lights off.

Answer

Had same problem i checked all doors and the sliding door was the cause fix it by crossing the black wires of the sensor no more chiming or light on

Usually this is a sticking or faulty door switch on the tailgate. It affects multiple years of the Windstar. Typically the only solution is to replace the switch. There is one switch attached to each side of the tailgate door.

I know this sounds silly but it does work.

To program the transmitters yourself:

1. Insert a key in the ignition and turn from 3(Off) to 4(On) eight times in rapid succession (within 10 seconds) with the eighth turn ending in the 4(On) position.
2. The doors will lock/unlock to confirm that programming mode has been entered.
3. Within 20 seconds, program a remote transmitter by pressing any button on a transmitter. The doors will lock/unlock to confirm that the remote transmitter has been programmed. (If more than 20 seconds pass before pressing a remote transmitter button, the programming mode will exit and the procedure will have to be repeated.)
4. Repeat the previous step to program additional remote transmitters. The doors will lock/unlock to confirm that each remote transmitter has been programmed.
5. When you have completed programming the remote transmitters, turn th ignition to 3(Off) or wait 20 seconds. Again the doors will lock/unlock to confirm programming has been completed.

Turn Ignition from OFF to RUN 8 times within 10 seconds, with the 8th time ending in RUN. All doors will lock then unlock to confirm programming mode. Within 20 seconds, press any button on remote transmitter. Door locks will cycle to confirm programming. Turn ignition to OFF. Locks will cycle again to indicate end of programming mode.

The instructions above DO work ! It IS that simple! So, please folks, just follow the instructions above. PLEASE don't pay some jerk on Ebay for the instructions.